Harry Potter Quidditch Documentary Mudbloods Captures A Release Date

When a fandom is on the transition from omnipresent stardom into heavily fortified niche status, there are several different ways fans and creators alike try to keep the magic alive. Some create spinoffs, some branch off into the theater, and some even find new life through theme park attractions. The Harry Potter franchise has done all three of these things on the creative end, but how exactly are fans staying plugged into the world of Hogwarts? One of the major ways fans of college age have engaged in showing off their fandom is through forming their own Quidditch leagues. Not so sure how this would work out, especially considering the lack of flying brooms? That's something the new documentary Mudbloods hopes to clear up.

Deadline announced that Mudbloods, a film directed by UCLA alumnus Farzad Sangari, will premiere at AFI DOCS festival on June 21st and will enjoy a limited release in theaters and VOD this fall. The documentary will focus on the UCLA Quidditch team's journey to the fifth annual Quidditch World Cup. On one hand, this is kind of cool, considering that the collegiate Quidditch scene has been slowly building itself over a good portion of years before becoming the organized sport it is today. Documentaries like this can be inspirational, as they showcase the love of the sport and the thrill of athleticism. Not to mention, you're still catering to the Harry Potter niche, which is still a pretty active niche. Best case scenario, this could be a sleeper hit.

On the other hand, this is a sport where people run around with brooms tucked between their legs and engage in a mix of basketball, soccer, and catch. Looking at the trailer for another Quidditch World Cup documentary, Brooms Up!, you can see where the trolls in the comments section are going to have a field day. Even as a hardcore Harry Potter fan myself, I can't help but feel a little weirded out by the real world adaptation of a sport that's supposed to look fanciful and majestic, but looks nothing like it did in the films. Quidditch kind of loses its edge when it's on the ground. Take a look at the Brooms Up trailer and judge for yourself.

Mudbloods, like any good documentary, aims to give the outside world some perspective into this underground sport, while at the same time drawing big time Quidditch and Harry Potter fans into the theaters. It'll be interesting to see the response from both fans and non fans alike when this film is unveiled this fall. Maybe as a result, we'll see high school students setting up their own school Quidditch leagues. Maybe this will become a bigger trend after the exposure this film is bound to receive. At the very least, this documentary might just inspire Calvin and Hobbes fans like myself to set up semi-professional CalvinBall leagues.

Mudbloods flies into the AFI Docs festival on June 21st, and then goes to theatrical and VOD release this fall.